Read-only file system message for RSA Identity Governance & Lifecycle
3 years ago
Originally Published: 2018-09-27
Article Number
000041127
Applies To
RSA Product Set: RSA Identity Governance & Lifecycle
RSA Product/Service Type: Enterprise Software
RSA Version/Condition: 7.0.0 and above
Platform: Linux running on VMware
Issue
When attempting to obtain the status, or stop the RSA Identity Governance & Lifecycle application, the following error may occur. 
# service aveksa_server status
/etc/init.d/aveksa_server: line 29: /var/run/aveksa_server.pid: Read-only file system
RSA Via Lifecycle and Governance is running
# service aveksa_server stop
/etc/init.d/aveksa_server: line 29: /var/run/aveksa_server.pid: Read-only file system
Stopping RSA Via Lifecycle and Governance:
Authenticating against security realm: ManagementRealm

In this case, the /var mount point has been switched to Read Only mode.
 

The /var/run/aveksa_server.pid file gets created when an operation is performed with the aveksa_server service.  The /var/run directory has the following access:  drwxr-xr-x, so only root has write access.

Cause
A drive consistency failure has triggered the operating system to switch the /var mount point to Read Only. This is an expected behavior when there has been a hard disk failure. The operating system does this to prevent damage to the system. Further, if the operating system is hosted on a virtual system, then the hardware is virtualized, with greater possibilities for simulated hard disk failure.
 
Resolution
Try re-starting the the VM, as the simulated hard disk failure may be transitory. Alternately, after a time, the virtual machine may self correct.

Examine the /var/log/messages log file, to determine if any disk failure has been reported. If none has been reported, then the problem was likely caused by the virtual machine.
Notes
If the Read-only file system message is being reported on physical hardware, then please engage your Linux system administrator.
If you are running an RSA Appliance, please engage RSA Customer Support for further assistance, as the hard disk may need to be replaced.

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